Play Based Learning: A Minecraft Kind of World

Play based learning. It’s become a bit of a mantra for me and for a few of my friends who help to produce Makersville clubs, classes and events. You have to believe in it if you are to implement it in your camp environment. We believe in it. The lessons are many.

Our week-by-week schedule is here. By activity. Register here.

THIS WEEK

The week was filled with emerald, obsidian and Ninja swords, ruby and sapphire ore and equipment and elemental staffs as we learned about Minecraft modding with Java. If your children speak Minecraft, perhaps you’ve heard words such as these before.

I have to admit, I know little about the game. I have my Minecraft account, but whenever I play, I seem to be digging myself into a very deep hole. For those of you knowledgeable about the game, I know you will understand.

But knowledge of the game was not necessary for not my role this week. We were three. Morio Murase, who teaches our “Programming for Minecraft with Java” class. Andy Tsoi-A-Sue, our high-school-graduate-entering-college-intern, and me, who helped to frame the goals for the day and provide some tie in to the real world and the programming world.

The children participating in the class came in with a substantial knowledge of the Minecraft game. Morio knows a lot of programming languages and loves to play games. I understand system design and how programming languages are used in making software systems. Andy had played the game and could provide a youth connection for us.

Together we worked out some details of how the Minecraft game could be internally organized. We talked about real-life classes of objects and Java classes of objects. Of client-server (network based) applications and of stand-alone applications. We talked about the Minecraft game, it’s features and how the features might relate to the internal design of the game.

It was all possible because they know the game so well.

I recall that many a programming class was framed in the context of a game. Here the participants’ knowledge of the Minecraft game, its environment, the story it provides and the modes in which it can be played enables a very sophisticated conversation to occur. They are the expert users.

The participants were in elementary, middle and high school. Perhaps they understood and retained what was said. It’s okay if everyone didn’t. We’ll repeat it sometime in the future.

The Minecraft game was the medium for delivery, Java was the programming language. We set simple, achievable goals wrapped in much, much play. It’s summer, after all, and it’s play based learning. By the end of the week, the participants had all implemented their first Minecraft mod.

There were other programs in place to support the Minecraft/Java class. It helps those working parents who need an all day program for their children. This week there was LEGO® play with regular LEGO® bricks and LEGO® Technics bricks. On Friday we had the Digital 3D club.

Minecraft elements seemed to find their way into all of our activities as we built with LEGO® bricks in Minecraft style, visualized moving Minecraft entities with LEGO® Technics, printed keychains of Minecraft objects on our Deezmaker Bukobot 3D printer and sculpted 3D ghasts and other items in clay for later digitizing and 3D printing. Many thanks to sculptress Sharon Moore, a model maker at Honda R&D Americas, for her time. We don’t have a 3D digitizer... yet... so we think we’ll try the Long Beach Public Library’s digitizing and printing services. We want a digital 3D version of those clay items. What we’ll do with them, we do not yet know. Maybe we’ll put them into a 3D scene or game.

It was definitely a Minecraft world this week.

NEXT WEEK

Next week, the program continues at Made in Long Beach, as the participants make a side scrolling game in Unity, a sophisticated game development environment. There’s still room in the class, we’d love to have your child with us! Our week-by-week schedule is here. By activity. Register here.

In the afternoon, we’ll play with fabric patterning using the style of M.C. Escher as our inspiration and the Zentangle style to create individual “blocks” that can then be combined into unique pattern series.

On Friday afternoon we’ll have our periodic Game Jam, in which the participants will discuss some element of game making, and spend time working on their games. The Game Jam is designed to keep the kids moving on their game development paths in Unity... Construct 2... and Minecraft...

We don’t currently have another Minecraft with Java class scheduled, but are looking at our schedule to see how we can fit one more in during the summer. If you’re interested in registering for this class, let us know and we’ll contact you if we do host it. In the fall, we’ll be starting a Minecraft Modders Club, for those participants who have taken our Minecraft with Java class. Join our mailing list to keep informed of our upcoming camps, classes and events.

Trish Tsoiasue is a co-founder of Makersville which collaborates with the Long Beach Boy Scouts of America to implement the Club Ten program. Makersville brings play based learning through Maker programs at makerspaces in Naples (the Long Beach Sea Base 5875 Appian Way) and downtown (Made in Long Beach 236 Pine Ave). Trish is also the co-founder of the Long Beach LEGO® User Group (which supports events that benefit Long Beach) and she is a certified facilitator in the LEGO® Serious Play® methods. Play on!